Aretha Franklin said it best, “R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me.”  As moms, we need to teach our children, starting at age 1, that they need to respect their mom and dad.  Children can be disrespectful at any age: the toddler trying to kick you while you are changing their diaper, the middle-schooler rolling their eyes, or the teenager talking disrespectfully.  But, the majority of the time, a child is disrespectful because they have been allowed to get away with this disrespect. If you look up the definition of respect in Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary it says, “a feeling or understanding that someone or something is important, serious, etc., and should be treated in an appropriate way.”

Moms, you are important!  Your job is serious and you should be treated in an appropriate way.  Children look around and see their peers talking disrespectfully to their moms and they think, “I’ll try that with my mom.”  You, as a mom, need to let them know quickly, that disrespect doesn’t work in your household. I believe when we stand up for ourselves and teach our children that our job is worthy of respect and, more importantly, we as women deserve respect, it sends a message to our children that we are a big deal.

Teaching respect starts early in a child’s life. When you are changing your child’s diaper and he/she tries to kick at you, they are not respecting you.  You don’t need to punish them, but you can lower your voice and say, “No, sir! Do not kick mommy while I am changing your diaper.”  Or, as a child grows a little bit older and they begin to roll their eyes at you or tell you to shut up, you need to correct them and tell them, “You don’t talk to me that way.”  If your teenager is constantly talking “at” you, treating you like you are dumber than dirt, maybe you should remind them, “ I am a smart person and I will not be talked to in that manner.”

Stand up for yourself and demand the respect that you should have. You don’t need to wait until your husband gets home from work to defend yourself, you can do it on your own. You are important! You are an amazing, beautiful woman that God created and you are an awesome mom!